James Swinton Co Ltd has been prosecuted after a workman died four weeks after being struck by a telehandler driven by a co-worker.

Charles Wilkinson, 51, from Berwick, was struck by the telehandler as it was being reversed along a one-way residential street on a Tweedmouth refurb project in November 2008. The company had not requested a road closure and residents’ cars were parked in the street.

The telehandler driver was reversing his vehicle up the street the wrong way when it mounted the pavement and struck Mr Wilkinson, who was taken to hospital with injuries to his pelvis, spine and ribs. He died four weeks later as a result of a blood clot caused by the incident.

Managers must minimise the need to reverse

The company of Hawick, Scotland pleaded guilty breaching Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £4,063 costs.

After the hearing HSE Inspector Dr Dave Shallow, said:

“This was a tragic accident that could and should have been avoided.

Site transport activities should be managed to minimise as far as possible the need for reversing. But where it is necessary to reverse, site managers should ensure that it is done in a safe and controlled manner, using a banksman, reversing aids on the vehicles and segregation of pedestrians and vehicles.

The company could have asked Berwick District Council for a road closure which, along with these measures and the removal of residents’ vehicles, would have allowed safer movement of construction plant and vehicles.”